Family
by flirtyalphonse
Summary: What starts off as an argument with Aang leads Toph on a journey to reconcile her relationship with her parents. A/N: I wrote this because it hits close to home. Her parents do love her... they're just overprotective, not evil!


**Family by Amphoterus  
Chapter 1: Field Trip**

"How would you know about how I feel? You don't even _have_ parents!" Toph screeched the last sentence on the top of her lungs. Through her anger, she could vaguely feel everyone in the Tea Shoppe gawking at her. _'So what?'_ she scoffed,_ 'Let them stare,'_ she thought to herself. She could feel her face heating up. She could also feel Twinkletoes trying to control his own anger.

Aang took a deep breath before speaking, "I may not have parents but I do have a family, Toph, and so do you!"

"You know what your problem is, Twinkletoes?" Toph asked in while pointing her index finger at Aang, "You think the world is full of rainbows and butterflies! Well, guess what!" She raised her hands in the air to emphasize her next point, "It's not! The sooner you realize that, the better."

Aang's mouth flew open at his friend's audacity, "Rainbows and butterflies?" he screamed in a slightly high-pitched voice, "I've _been_ around the world! I've _experienced_ the world!"

"Aang…" Katara spoke in a warning tone. She was the first to speak up while everyone else was still speechless at the commotion.

At this point, Aang was losing his patience. Ignoring Katara, he went on, "You're just mad for no reason and taking it out on everyone else! I know you're holding onto some kind of grudge. It's been years! Maybe it's time to just let it go?" He was fuming.

Toph was also seething on the inside. She grit her teeth and spoke as calmly as she could, "Whatever. I'm leaving!" She turned towards the doorway. Before she left, she could hear Katara calling her name and Zuko telling Katara to give her some space.

As soon as the door slammed shut behind her, Toph created a wave of earth to transport herself as far away from the Tea Shoppe as possible. She could feel strangers staring at her as the streets of Ba Sing Se rumbled and she jumped onto the protruding rocks. She knew she was creating a public spectacle and could feel their panic but at that moment she didn't care, "Get out of my way!" she screamed to innocent bystanders who-literally-jumped out of Toph's way as she sped away from the Jasmine Dragon, leaving a cloud of dust trailing behind her.

She wasn't even down the street when she sensed a man pushing a cart across the road. Toph growled to herself, narrowing her eyebrows, aiming straight for the cart. She bended a slab of earth and sent it propelling towards her target. The man shrieked at the oncoming missile and ran across the road just as the projectile annihilated the cart along with its precious cargo. Toph could hear the merchant bawling about his cabbages but she didn't care at the moment.

She passed the Fancy Lady Day Spa she had gone to once with Katara and found herself at the water's edge, near the bridge that separated the neighborhoods from the shopping centers in the Upper Ring of Ba Sing Se. She hopped off her make-shift earth skates and decided to rest and sink her feet into the water. She only had a few minutes to herself when she felt a familiar presence nearby.

"Have you come to scold me?" She snapped at the approaching figure.

"No," he said, "Mind if I sit with you?"

"If I say yes, I do mind, will you go away?" Toph asked.

He cracked a small smile, "No."

Toph took a deep breath, "To what do I owe the pleasure, your majesty?" she spat out sarcastically.

Zuko remained quiet, allowing Toph to cool down. An awkward silence enveloped the two of them before Zuko finally spoke, "I wanted to make sure you were okay."

"I can take care of myself!" She snapped. _'Why do people always think they have to coddle me?'_

"That's not what I meant," Zuko spoke evenly, turning to face Toph who felt her face heat up in anger once more. He said, "You don't realize it but you do have people who care about you."

Toph sighed, _'It's not the same…'_ she thought to herself but instead simply said, "I know."

"Aang was only joking. You know how goofy he can be."

Toph smiled thinking of all the times she and Aang had teamed up against Sokka but soon frowned , thoughts returning to tonight's incident, "He didn't have to bring up my parents," She whispered out loud. Why would she want to think about the people who hurt her? The two people in this universe who were _supposed_ to care about her… didn't care. She was angry because she knew what Aang said was true. The truth cut deep. Years had passed yet the thought of family still brought pangs to her chest.

Zuko's voice brought Toph out of her own reverie, "My father gave me this scar."

Toph gasped, "What? We thought you got into a fight-"

"We?" Zuko interrupted with an amused smile on his face. He was vaguely aware that people theorized about his scar but he didn't know his comrades gossiped behind his back as well, "You're partially correct. My father gave me this scar for speaking out of turn and then he banished me to teach me a lesson," Zuko explained, "I was only thirteen."

"I can't even imagine," Toph felt guilt gnaw at her.

"Why did you leave your home to teach Aang earthbending?" Zuko's question caught her off guard.

"I..." She hesitated.

"You don't have to answer. Just think about it," Zuko assured her. She chewed away at the bottom of her lip. She knew all along that leaving home wasn't just for Aang's benefit but more for her own. _'It wasn't even about earthbending!'_ She wanted to say. She wanted to be free.

Zuko seemed to know more about people than he let on because he let Toph think on her own before asking, "When was the last time you saw your parents?"

Toph felt ashamed, "I sent them a letter… but that was years ago, back when we were hiding out in the Fire Nation."

"If it was during the war, it may have been intercepted."

"Intercepted by Combustion Man?" She asked Zuko who quirked an eyebrow.

"Well… that wasn't his name but the letter could have been intercepted by anyone during the war. You once told me that all my Uncle wanted was for me to find my own path and see the light," Zuko began. He took a deep breath before continuing, "Maybe it's time for you to find your own path and see the light for yourself? We know you can take care of yourself… but do your parents know that?"

Toph remained silent and let herself become immersed in her own thoughts, _'No. They don't,'_ Deep down, she knew Zuko was right. Deep down, she also knew her parents weren't the only ones at fault… it was just difficult to set her own pride aside.

The two sat in silence until Toph frowned and knitted her eyebrows together, "Wait… how did you find me here?"

"You left a trail," He said while pointing to the sidewalk which was completely destroyed due to her earth wave.

"Oh."

"You know you're going to have to fix that, right?" He asked incredulously.

Toph inwardly groaned, "Yeah… I know..." A few seconds later, she elbowed Zuko who let out a yelp. She cringed and quickly added, "That's how I show affection."

"I know," Zuko smirked.

_To be continued… Feel free to give me constructive criticism!_

_**Up next:**__ Toph is summoned to Ba Sing Se's court for all the damage she caused to the city with her earthbending. She also reconciles her relationship with Aang._


End file.
